


Overworked

by VerdantSyren



Category: She-Ra and the Princesses of Power (2018)
Genre: Angst, Angst with a Happy Ending, Catra (She-Ra) Needs a Hug, Catra is trying her best, F/F, F/M, Hurt/Comfort, I'll tag as I go, Overworking, Post-Canon, but she's self destructive sometimes, focus is mostly on Catradora but others are background
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-06-18
Updated: 2020-06-30
Packaged: 2021-03-04 03:07:37
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 3,976
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24796678
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/VerdantSyren/pseuds/VerdantSyren
Summary: Catra is getting sick and tired of the disapproving looks that Adora sends her way lately. So what if she’s been working a lot? There’s a lot to do! Hell, Sparkles won’t let them forget that there’s a lot to do: reconstructing Salineas, fixing up the smaller towns that were destroyed, turning the Fright Zone into a suitable place for Scorpia to rule, and eradicating any Horde sympathizers who didn’t get the memo that the war is over.And besides, a fair amount of the work that they have to do is thanks to Catra, so it’s only right that she puts as much energy into fixing Etheria as she did destroying it. Adora is a real hypocrite if she of all people is judging Catra for working too hard to help others.So what if she doesn’t get much sleep, or she only eats about a meal per day? She’s doing fine! She’s certainly gone on much less.OR: Catra is drowning her guilt in overworking which results in major angst.
Relationships: Adora/Catra (She-Ra), Bow/Glimmer (She-Ra), Perfuma/Scorpia (She-Ra)
Comments: 24
Kudos: 524





	1. Step on the Gas

Catra is getting sick and tired of the disapproving looks that Adora's been sending her way lately. So what if she’s been working a lot? There’s a lot to do! Hell, Sparkles won’t let them forget that there’s a lot to do: reconstructing Salineas, fixing up the smaller towns that were destroyed, turning the Fright Zone into a suitable place for Scorpia to rule, and eradicating any Horde sympathizers who didn’t get the memo that the war is over.

And besides, a fair amount of the work that they have to do is thanks to Catra, so it’s only right that she puts as much energy into fixing Etheria as she did destroying it. Adora is a real hypocrite if she of all people is judging  _ Catra _ for working too hard to help others.

Catra has settled into a routine now, anyway, which is something that Perfuma says will help her manage some of her anxieties. She wakes up to eat breakfast with Adora, Sparkles (she knows her name is Glimmer, but some habits die hard), and Arrow Boy (see note about Glimmer’s name), and then heads out to work on whatever needs to be done. Most of her time currently is spent in the Fright Zone, working to help clear out any Horde presence in the area. She skips dinner to study many of the things that the Horde never taught her, histories and customs of Etheria that would never have been uttered in her childhood living situation. As much as Catra hates paperwork, she hates being unprepared even more.

(And besides, Catra likes seeing the look on everyone’s faces when she mentions something about Etheria that they don’t know themselves. It makes Princess meetings  _ far _ more tolerable.)

So what if she doesn’t get much sleep, or she only eats about a meal per day? She’s doing fine! She’s certainly gone on much less.

* * *

There’s one day where everything seems like too much for Catra.

She snaps at Scorpia while they’re working on cleaning up Scorpia’s family castle. She doesn’t even really know what exactly the princess has done to piss her off, but Scorpia is on her nerves. She’s talking about a trip she took with Perfuma to visit Mermista in Salineas, and maybe it’s her voice or her unending optimism about everything, but Catra can’t listen to it anymore.

“So  _ then _ Sea Hawk decided to burst out into this really cool shanty, but Mermista--”

“Scorpia,” Catra interrupts, grinding her teeth, “no offense, but I don’t really care, so could you just  _ shut up _ for five minutes?”

The way that her best friend deflates immediately causes guilt to bubble up in Catra’s gut. She feels like she just got sucker punched.

“I… I’m sorry, Scorpia, I didn’t mean that. I’ve just been a little stressed out and want to get this done and I’m working on my anger but--”

Scorpia holds her pincers out in a placating manner. “Hey, Wildcat, it’s okay. I know you’ve been doing a lot recently. I don’t take it personally.”

Catra relaxes slightly, but her fur is still standing on end, and her tail is a bit poofy. She smooths her hair down, her claws digging slightly into her scalp.

“Thanks, Scorp. I’m going to work outside for a little while, get some fresh air, you know?”

The feline heads outside before Scorpia can properly respond, and she leans against the side of the decrepit castle. She takes a few deep breaths. Her body is tired, and a little voice in the back of her head tells her that she should go back to Brightmoon and rest.

But there are louder voices in her head, too. Voices that remind Catra that all of this destruction across Etheria is her fault. Voices that taunt her for her past, her mistakes.

She gets back to work, and she works hard enough and long enough that the blood pounding in her ears blocks out any sound at all.

* * *

A few mornings after she snapped at Scorpia, everyone is awkward around Catra at breakfast. The three other members of the Best Friend Squad share looks, like they know something she doesn’t. It pisses her off.

“What is it?” she finally asks, her fork clattering against her plate when she drops it. The others look at her, startled.

“What do you mean?” Glimmer asks. 

“What’s wrong? You guys are acting weird.”

“We aren’t acting weird!” Adora exclaims, her voice shaky. “Everything is good, we’re all good, right guys?” She’s never been very good at lying, especially to Catra.

Catra spots Glimmer and Bow rolling their eyes at the blonde’s poor acting skills. “You and I both know that’s bullshit, Adora.”

Glimmer sighs, putting on a nervous smile.

“We just… you’ve been working really hard recently, so we wanted to surprise you with a few days off! Castaspella said that you and Adora could go visit Mystacor and relax for a few days!”

“Yeah!” Bow agrees, clasping his hands together, “It’ll be so much fun! And Mystacor is really relaxing--”

“That’s really nice of you guys,” Catra says, eyeing each of them suspiciously, “but today Scorpia and I are supposed to work on clearing everything out of the old Horde barracks.”

Bow waves a hand dismissively. “I’m sure Scorpia can handle that by herself.”

“But it’ll go faster if both of us work on it together.”

“Then Perfuma can go over and help her!”

Catra takes a deep breath. “But I promised her I’d--”

Glimmer sighs in frustration. “Come  _ on _ , Catra, just go on the stupid vacation! Everything will be fine if you aren’t here for a few days. Scorpia mentioned you seemed stressed and we thought maybe you needed a break.”

The feline seizes up for a brief moment. So  _ that’s _ what this is about.

“I apologized to Scorpia for snapping at her already,” she says defensively. “She said she understood, and I’m fine. I just want to get everything done and  _ then _ I’ll relax.”

Adora grabs Catra’s hand and squeezes it gently. “Catra, I really do think you deserve a break. You’ve been working so hard.”

_ I don’t deserve anything good _ , she thinks. She yanks her hand away from her girlfriend like the touch burns her, and the hurt look that gets sent her way forces her to glare at the wall.

“I…” she considers her words carefully. “I appreciate you guys being concerned, but seriously, I’m fine. I like the work. I promise.”

It feels like a punishment, the work. The aching muscles remind her that she’s trying to fix the pain she caused others. It pushes her to work harder.

“But Catra,” Adora begs, her voice cracking, “Please just--”

“I’m going to head out early,” Catra says, already heading towards the large doors that lead to one of the castle halls. She ignores the sympathetic looks Bow and Glimmer send her way. “I’ll get a head start in the Fright Zone, maybe even come back early when we’re done.”

She tries not to, but her body betrays her and she closes the doors behind her more aggressively than intended, leaving an uneaten breakfast and three concerned friends behind.

* * *

Catra doesn’t end up coming home early. In fact, she comes home far later than normal. Every time Scorpia tries to send her home, Catra comes up with another excuse to stay, or another quick task that she wants to finish so they don’t have to worry about it tomorrow. One task turns to two, then five, and it isn’t until around midnight that Scorpia says she’s heading to bed.

When Catra stumbles into her shared room with Adora, guilt and anger seize her. Why are they trying to stop her? She’s just fixing her own mess. Shouldn’t they be happy about that?

She doesn’t sleep much that night, but that’s okay, because she’s up just a few hours later. She skips breakfast and heads straight to the Fright Zone again, and Scorpia wakes up to see her hard at work, almost like she never left.

* * *

Catra operates this way for about a week. She barely sleeps, and she skips meals. Scorpia makes sure that she has a snack or two, and Catra takes quick naps in the beginning, but by the end of the week she can’t remember the last time she’s eaten a full meal or had more than an hour or two of sleep.

Her muscles ache constantly, and her body is running on empty, but she keeps working.In fact, Catra almost likes how her head is empty. Her thoughts are unusually quiet for once, and it allows her to work in a pained peace.

And as the Fright Zone becomes more and more homey, less like the Horde and more like Scorpia’s kingdom, Catra is happy. She’s fixing things.

Of course, it doesn’t last long.

She’s working contently one day when she hears whispering from outside the hall that leads into Scorpia’s throne. She ignores it, but the whispers grow louder and louder until they echo off the walls and forcibly draw her attention.

She turns as Glimmer, Adora, and Bow follow Scorpia into the room, murmuring amongst themselves. Catra turns her back towards them.

“Catra.” Her name sounds more like a sigh from Adora’s lips. “We’re worried about you.”

“Why?” she asks, and the question is genuine. She’s been working so well recently! Shouldn't they be proud of her?

The others glance at each other skeptically. “Uh, well, we haven’t seen you at all these past few days, not even at breakfast,” Bow says, his eyebrows knitting together.

“I’ve been getting up earlier,” she replies. She turns to face them, her hands gripping the wall next to her. She tries to play it off like she’s just leaning against it casually, but the others eye her with concern.

“You’re swaying on your feet, Catra,” Glimmer points out, and said feline straightens her shoulders. Her body screams in exhaustion.

“Yeah Wildcat,” Scorpia says, her voice tainted with worry, “we’re almost done here and I can finish up most of this stuff, so maybe you should go on back to Brightmoon and take a break--”

“I don’t need a break!” she snaps, taking a step forward. She immediately regrets it when she’s overcome with dizziness, one of her hands moving to cup her head.

Adora takes a step forward, but Catra holds a hand out to stop her. “Catra, when was the last time you slept for more than a few hours?” The only response she gets is a mumble. “What?”

“I said, ‘I don’t know.’”

“When was the last time you ate?” she questions further, and Catra’s grip on the wall weakens.

“I-I don’t know. A meal? That breakfast where I… yeah.”

“You mean the breakfast from a week ago?” Bow asks, incredulously, “When we were all together?”

Catra realizes she doesn’t have the strength to nod, so she just stands there. Her silence is confirmation enough.

“That’s it,” Adora states, her voice firm, “you’re coming back with us to Brightmoon and you’re going to rest and eat and then we’re going to _ talk _ about this.”

She wants to shake her head, scream ‘No!’ at the top of her lungs, but Adora is walking closer to her and everything is starting to become blurry, and Catra is realizing that all of her energy is absolutely, undeniably  _ gone _ .

Glimmer’s eyebrows furrow. “Catra…?”

“I…” She can’t muster any other words, and suddenly the world is spinning and her legs are giving out from under her and she’s on the ground, cradled in her girlfriend’s arms.

She can barely hear them calling her name. She can only feel the blanket of exhaustion that engulfs her entirely, drawing her into a deep, deep sleep.


	2. Refueled

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you all for such wonderful support. Over 100 kudos and 800 hits? I could never have imagined such support on my writing, and my heart is truly full. I hope you all enjoyed this story, and I hope to publish more content soon. Lots of love!!

Catra wakes up in her and Adora’s bed. She doesn’t remember falling asleep, but when she tries to sit up, she can’t. No matter what she tells her torso and her arms, they just lay there like lead next to her.

“Adora?” she calls out, her voice scratchy. There’s a clash from the bathroom off the side of their bedroom, and out comes rushing her girlfriend.

“Catra,” she breathes, darting to her side and bending down to kiss her on the forehead. “I was worried you weren’t going to wake up.”

She snorts. “Of course I was going to wake up. I’m not dead or anything.”

Adora’s expression hardens, but she doesn’t say anything. Instead, she helps prop Catra up on a few pillows so that she can stay sitting up. Then she goes to the other side of the room and begins preparing something. After a moment, she returns to Catra’s side with a bowl of soup and some crackers.

“You need to eat,” she says, placing the tray delicately on Catra’s lap. “We weren’t able to get a lot of food into you while you were asleep.”

Catra looks between the bowl in front of her and Adora’s stern expression. Her stomach flips, and though she feels like she wants to throw up, there’s also an undeniable hunger within her. So, she takes the bowl and tentatively sips at the broth, a sigh escaping her throat at the soothing warmth.

After she finishes the broth, she begins to munch on the crackers laid out for her.

“How long was I asleep, anyway?” she asks, her mouth full.

Adora’s face twitches. “You woke up from time to time, but in general you’ve been in bed for a day and a half.”

Catra chokes on her cracker, and Adora rubs her back as she coughs. She glares down at the food in front of her.

“A day and a half? I was supposed to be working with Scorpia on finishing the outside garden! I have to go help her.”

“What?” Adora asks, blinking incredulously. “You’re… you’re kidding.”

“Do I sound like I’m kidding?”

“Catra…” her girlfriend’s face is angry, something Catra hasn’t seen directed at her since the war. “You literally worked yourself to exhaustion! There’s no way I’m just going to let you go back to working in the Fright Zone!”

Adora wasn’t going to _let her?_ Bullshit.

“I commanded an entire _army,_ Adora, so I can handle reconstruction just _fine_. I worked on less food and sleep in the Horde.”

“We aren’t in the Horde anymore, Catra!”

“You think I don’t know that?” she snaps, baring her fangs. “We’re in fucking Brightmoon, Adora! I know! I’m reminded of it every time I wake up and every time I go to sleep.”

“Why say that like it’s a bad thing?!”

“Because I don’t deserve it!” Catra’s ears lay flat on her head, and she looks down, quieter now. “I don’t deserve any of this.”

Adora’s features soften, and she rests on the edge of the bed. “Of course you deserve it.”

“No, I really don’t.” She allows her girlfriend to take her hand and gently pry it open, releasing the fist she didn’t realize she was making. “All of these things that the Rebellion has to fix? My fault. I’m living in the place I tried to destroy _multiple times_.”

“Catra--”

“And I see how some of the other princesses still look at me, you know? They have every right to not trust me. But if I work to show them that I’m trying, then maybe…”

_Maybe the voices will go away? Maybe the guilt will fade?_

What does Catra want out of all of this?

Instead of voicing any of those, she lets the sentence trail off. Silence hangs thick in the air, making her more anxious than before.

“You have to take care of yourself,” Adora says finally, rubbing soothing circles on the back of Catra’s hand. Normally it would make her purr, but she’s too stressed to allow her body the simple pleasure. “This… working yourself to the state of passing out, it isn’t the way to repent.”

“Then… how?”

The blonde sighs and moves the tray of food away to the table at the side of their bed. She slips in next to Catra, wrapping her arm around the feline to cuddle her. “It just… it takes time. Helping with the reconstruction is great, Catra, but you have to let the healing take time.”

“But then I just have this… this feeling in my gut. This heavy, bad feeling.”

Adora tightens her hug. “That’s guilt, and… it might always be there. I honestly don’t know.”

The thought makes Catra freeze, and for a moment she stops breathing. Adora blinks and looks down at her.

“When I didn’t eat or I didn’t sleep and just kept working, the guilt wasn’t so bad. It felt like I was, I don’t know, making up for some of the stuff I did,” she explains.

“You were still suffering, but in a different way. Nobody here wants to see you suffer.”

_I want to see myself suffer_ , Catra thinks, and she’s startled by the thought. It’s quick, the overwhelming wave of realization that washes over her, and she’s full of undeniable emotion. The only thing Catra knows is suffering; it’s familiar. It feels right.

But it isn’t. It isn’t right. 

Thoughts race through her head, but one sticks out among the rest.

_Do I deserve to suffer?_

Despite her best efforts, Catra cannot help the sob that climbs out of her throat, or the tears and hiccups that accompany it.

“Oh, Catra…” Adora says softly, like she’s looking at a wounded animal. Maybe that’s all that Catra is.

The blonde wraps her girlfriend up tighter, and the feline buries her head into her shoulder, sobbing. Her whole body goes limp in the embrace, all resolve gone. Adora strokes her short hair and murmurs comforting words into Catra’s ear.

“I love you so much,” she promises, her voice soft and caring. “You mean everything to me, and we’re going to fix this.”

It only makes Catra cry harder.

* * *

It is agreed amongst the princesses that the best course of action is to have Catra stay in Plumeria for a few days to rest and heal, both physically and emotionally. The feline relents, only because she doesn’t have the energy to fight it.

When she arrives in Plumeria, she’s overwhelmed by how beautiful it is. There are plants of all kinds, with every color and hue Catra can imagine. Perfuma’s runestone is as healthy as ever, and acts as a soft light when the sky dims to night. It’s different from the Black Garnet, which she can only ever associate to a violent, electrifying feeling. 

That’s where Catra spends most of her time during her visit. The thrum of energy that radiates from the runestone is warm and calming, much like Perfuma’s own energy. It helps Catra relax, and it gives her a quiet place to think and meditate. And Perfuma also spends a lot of time with Catra, helping her work through some of her innermost issues.

“If you want to really atone for your past, live the best life you can now,” she says, her voice full of care and compassion. “You can do so much good, Catra, but you have to be good to yourself, too. It’s like with all of these plants.” She rests a hand in the soft grass, and gestures for Catra to do the same. “Every single one of these plants grows strong and bears good fruit, but only because they get the nutrients that they need. Without the nutrients, they would get sick.”

And then, they sit in silence. Sometimes, Catra asks Perfuma a question about meditation or healing or guilt, and Perfuma answers her questions calmly and with great care. Other times, when Catra doesn’t feel like she can say anything, they sit in silence, and she enjoys the wind ruffling her short hair. She feels the grass beneath her, and the world begins to have a sense of security for Catra. Instead of feeling overwhelmed by all of the goodness around her, she begins to integrate into it.

They do that for every day that Catra is there, and it slowly starts to help. She starts to understand what Perfuma is telling her, and she starts to feel like healing is a possibility.

* * *

When Catra returns to Brightmoon, with Perfuma raving about her progress like a proud teacher, things are looking up. She’s up to eating two meals a day, and sleeping for about six hours a night. It isn’t perfect, but it’s a start.

She arrives there around midday, when the princesses are having a meeting. She tells Perfuma that they shouldn’t interrupt, but the flower princess will have none of it. Instead, she pushes Catra through the door and follows in.

She further announces their presence by exclaiming, “We’re here!” and all attention is turned towards Catra. 

Scorpia is the first to react, throwing herself towards Catra and enveloping her in one of her signature hugs.

“Oh Wildcat! I’m so glad that you’re back! And look at you, with color back in your fur! You look great!”

Surprisingly, Mermista is the next to greet her. “We’re happy that staying with Perfuma helped you, or whatever,” she says, her voice monotone as always. But when Catra meets her eyes, there’s a genuine concern there that makes her feel warm.

The other princesses act in kind, offering their support to her. Glimmer and Bow both hug her, saying how she’s invited to breakfast in the morning if she wants.

“I can’t believe I missed eating with Horde scum,” the queen tells her, jabbing her in the side with her elbow.

“I can’t believe I missed eating with Sparkles and Arrow Boy,” Catra bites back, but her smile betrays her.

She sits down next to Adora. Neither of them say anything to one another, even as the meeting starts back up again. The blonde just grabs Catra’s hand and gives it a comforting squeeze, and they both understand.

* * *

The first morning she’s back, she wakes up to Adora holding her close. She’s pressed up against the blonde’s chest, so she cuddles closer to try and get more warmth. Her body relaxes into the cuddle, and she feels at peace.

“Morning, Catra,” Adora murmurs as she buries her head into Catra’s neck.

“Mornin’,” she replies. “I missed this.”

“Me too.”

They stay that way for a little while longer, but eventually Adora’s stomach starts to growl, which makes both girls laugh.

Catra sits up, leaning forward on her elbows to look at her girlfriend. “Sounds like someone is ready for breakfast.”

Adora smiles sheepishly. “Yeah, I guess so.” She climbs out of bed and starts looking through her drawers for an outfit. “Are you… gonna join us?”

Neither girl misses the hesitation in her words, but Catra pretends that she did. “Yeah, I just need a few more minutes to wake up. But I’ll be there, promise.”

The blonde smiles, and Catra’s heart flutters.

* * *

When Catra finally does make it down to breakfast, the other three members of the Best Friends Squad are already eating. When she enters, they all look up at her.

Bow greets her first.

“Catra!” he exclaims, a smile on his face, “it’s good to see you for breakfast! You really do look better.”

“I feel better,” she says, and she means it. Her body doesn’t ache anymore, and she isn’t dizzy whenever she turns too quickly. She feels refreshed, rested, and lighter.

“That’s good,” Glimmer says softly, and Catra knows that she means it. “We’re all really glad that you’re rested and healthier.”

Catra sits down next to Adora, who just offers her a proud smile.

As she digs into breakfast with her best friends, Catra realizes two very important things:

One, is that she still has a long way to go before she’s really recovered from everything.

Two, is that she’ll get there. She knows it.


End file.
